13 Important Checklist to consider before Buying a House

Home buying can be difficult and tensed if a customer is not aware of what he should follow while buying a home.This article will cover some of the essential points, and more practicable and real ones. Here are the 13 Important Checklist to consider before Buying a House.

First, hire a lawyer by paying him Rs 5,000 to Rs 10,000 to go through all documents on the land and the property. It is difficult for a consumer to understand a 7/12 extract (Maharashtra) filled with industry jargon such as title deed, land use, approvals from municipal corporation, occupational certificate. In case of a resale, this document will cover receipts of property tax paid and loan release document from bank in case of fully paid-up loans on the property.

Estimate the total cost of ownership, including parking charges, stamp duty, registration charges, new furniture / furnishings that a customer may have to purchase. All this could contribute to almost 5-20 percent of the bare cost of the apartment.

It is important to understand about the final usable area of the apartment, especially in case of apartments under construction. Most of the times, the sale would be on super-built up area. Consumers need to be comfortable with the livable area they will finally get to use.

Estimate total cost of running the home. This will include maintenance charges, property tax, increased commuting charges as compared to your present place. Please ensure that this fits in your monthly budget.

It’s equally important to check whether most of the other occupants in the building are like-minded and in the similar age group. If the residents are not like-minded, conflicts emerge eventually over a period of time on how to maintain the building, adjusting on parking spaces, whether pet animals are allowed in the elevator etc. I would avoid staying in buildings with a mix of 1BHK, 2BHK, 3BHK apartments – different budgets and income levels of occupants – will cause grief in the long run. This is where we carry out Neighborhood Details as well as Neighbor Details On Floor so as to help you find out more about your neighborhood and other families staying in the building.

If you are buying the apartment as an investment, think through the profile of your typical tenant and whether the location of your apartment is good enough for such a tenant. If it is a commuting couple, see if the apartment is close to the railway station. If there is a parking space, check if you require two parking slots.

Speak with the building watchman or the watchman of the neighboring building in case the building you would buy the flat in, is under construction to find out the situation of water supply, electricity supply, availability of domestic help, level of security and safety, neighborhood grocery stores, deliveries from restaurants, gyms, day care centers, hospitals and schools, depending on your life situation, and your need. We can help you out with this when you opt for the PSS service and we will provide you the report that helps you make a decision fast.

Think through if some neighboring small building or bungalow has the potential to be converted into a taller building and will it block your view in the next 2 to 3 years. Ask around from the security guard of such buildings if there is some discussion going on for redevelopment.

Find out whether the home loan you are thinking about is the cheapest loan? Explore rates for woman co-ownership or senior citizen, if applicable. Customer service in private sector banks and public sector banks is not too different in home loans since our interaction is minimal on an ongoing basis. Hence, fish for the best rate.

Discuss with the seller upfront on cash component, if any. These things spring up at the last moment, and most of us do not have access to large amounts of cash.

If you are buying the apartment as an investment, please ensure that it fits into your overall asset allocation and that you have a balanced mix between equities, debt instruments and real estate. I would recommend a 40:20:40 mix between the three for investors below 50 years of age. Also, calculate your annual returns from the real estate as a combination of 2-3 percent rental income plus expected capital appreciation less maintenance charges.

Find the average range of prices in the neighborhood by asking around. One should speak to people in 2-3 neighboring buildings to get an idea. There could be a range of 5-10 percent difference even within neighboring buildings, depending on quality of construction, exact configuration of apartment, etc.

If you are buying an under-construction apartment, then visit buildings delivered already by the same builder to check out on quality of his construction, assuming that it would be the minimum quality he would deliver here. You can ask occupants of the older building on whether the building was developed on time, or the developers handed over the building to the society amiably, etc.

We can understand that finding a property is a daunting and time consuming task. In today's fast paced life we often do not get enough time to carry out the necessary research needed when searching for a property and this can lead to dissatisfaction.

To sum it up, buying an apartment is possibly the biggest decision you would take, ranking after your marriage and having a child. You have a responsibility towards yourself and towards your family and doing all the above due diligence before buying your apartment, will ensure that “What you thought is what you got”!

Zoogyo understands the buyers problem and therefore it is offering a service. You can check out the service - PSS Service. This will help your to make buying decision easily and with full confidence.

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